A Review on Complete Blood Count as Possible Indicator for Detecting COVID-19 Suspects

Abstract

Background: Severe acute respiratory syndrome corona virus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is a novel severe acute respiratory syndrome corona virus. The original source of viral the transmission to humans remains unclear, as does whether the virus became pathogenic before or after the spillover event. COVID-19 has impacted many populations, with distinct clinical repercussions correlated with age groups. Because of the rapid spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, affected countries have taken a heterogeneous and evolving approach to the diagnosis of infection in patients, and continue to have different and, in some cases, evolving strategies to determine what segments of the population should be tested.
Objectives: To confirm the COVID-19 infection through complete blood count test, to evaluate the CBC test parameters in COVID-19 patients, to identify complete blood count predictors of test positivity in order to support the management of patients requiring swab tests.
Main Body: Laboratory blood tests have not been assessed with regard to their sensitivity or specificity for the diagnosis of COVID-19, nor their value as prognostic indicators. A complete blood count (CBC) is a blood test used to evaluate your overall health and detect a wide range of disorders. The following hematological parameters are measured in CBC: White Blood Cell (WBC), Red Blood Cell (RBC), hemoglobin (Hb), hematocrit (Het), Mean Cell Volume (MCV), Mean Cell Hemoglobin (MCH), mean Cell Hemoglobin Concentration (MCHC), Red Cell Distribution Width (RDW), platelet count (Plt), and Mean Platelet Volume (MPV). Decreased platelet, lymphocyte, hemoglobin, eosinophil, and basophil count, increased neutrophil count and neutrophil-lymphocyte and platelet-lymphocyte ratio have been associated with COVID-19 infection and a worse clinical outcome. Platelet (PLT) count is an important parameter included in In COVID-19 infection, it is found in approximately 60% of severe patients. The lymphocyte count of the severe COVID-19 group was found to be significantly lower than in the common COVID-19 and influenza groups (P<0.001 and P = 0.012).
Conclusion: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a highly contagious illness caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome SARS-CoV-2. It has had a devastating effect on the world's demographics resulting in more than 5.3 million deaths worldwide. The severity of the disease increased with age and men were more likely to die from disease complications. Most CBC parameters were found to be significantly increased in patients. Significantly increased neutrophils and decreased lymphocytes were the most relevant predictors of severe disease and death. The only CBC parameter that was not associated with the disease was basophil count.